I will reach my goals, one day at a time

I thought I would do an Amazon Kindle review as it has been recently upgraded to make reading on the go even more enjoyable. For those who never heard of the Kindle because you have been living in a black hole, it is a wireless reading device, or eBook reader, that can download wirelessly all kinds of reading material including books, magazines, and newspapers. There are different versions available so for a full spec click here to see the differences between each one.

There was nothing really else comparable on the market to the original Amazon Kindle review, with the exception of the Sony EBook Reader, which still is light years away from what the Kindle can do. And now it is especially left in the dust with the new improvements to the Kindle

Battery life is always an issue with portable electronics so Amazon gave their new Kindle 25% more battery life. With the wireless turned on, you can read for four days before having to recharge. With wireless turned off, you get up to two weeks of reading time before having to recharge which takes about four hours.

One of the most notable new features on the new Kindle is the “Read-to-Me”. You can choose a male or female voice, the speed at which the reader reads to you, then sit back and its story time! It will even automatically turn the page for you so you can really relax, close your eyes and have any book, magazine or newspaper read to you. This is really nice, especially if you do a lot of driving and always liked “books on tape”.

There are plenty of enhancements to the reading screen itself as well. It now has a higher resolution, with 16 shades of gray, so the text and images or photos are sharper. The screen is not like a computer screen, but made to look more like a page in a book, with no-glare and can be read in direct sunlight. You can also adjust the font to six different sizes to suit your eyes.

Amazon also made the Kindle lighter and thinner for easy transport and for better ergonomics. It now only weighs 10.2 ounces and is only one-third of an inch wide. This makes it easier to carry around and fit in your purse, jacket pocket, and briefcase or computer bag. It’s nice that they can cut down on the weight and size without compromising the visual quality of the device.

The page-turning feature has now been improved to prevent you from accidentally hitting the button and turning the page before you want it to. The buttons are now turned inward slightly so it requires a more intentional click on your part to turn the page. And now, for those who are extremely impatient, the pages turn 20% faster than before. No more wasted time.

This wireless reading device price is relatively higher. But if you read a lot, the new Amazon Kindle review is definitely a worthy investment. The prices on reading material to download are cheaper than if you buy the actual item online or in your local bookstore and you can have all your books all in one place and with you all the time. Stuck in traffic? Don’t fret, chill out. Now you can read a book or have it read to you!

Budgeting is one of those things that has taken me a long time to learn. It also seems that budgeting is one of those things that many people seem to ignore these days, it seemed to go out of fashion in the mid noughties. This approach to finances has resulted in misery for thousands of people in North America and the UK. Whether or not it is deliberate that people neglect their finances in this way, or it’s a lack of financial education, only they will know for themselves. For me anyway it was a combination of the two. Never really understanding how to budget and largely ignoring that fact.

As with all financial issues, it’s best to learn the lessons early in life. We have recently come across a tool aimed at families called Go Henry and a similar tool called Osper. They are prepaid debit and credit cards. You load money onto the app to allow your child to spend off the card. You can control what they spend their money on and your child can tick off jobs to earn their extra pocket money. For a full review check out this website, but it is safe to say so far so good. It’s working out for us and the children are enjoying using the app.

For those of us that are having to learn how to budget as adults, then the sooner you try and get to grips with your finances the better. The banking institutions where heavily blamed for the crash in 2008 because it seemed that the lenders didn’t perform any due diligence when lending to people. In fact they almost encourage irresponsible lending as this enabled them to make large sums of money. It doesn’t seem right that some of the richest organisations in the worlds largest economies profit from other peoples misery.

However, budgeting is straightforward and something that should be seen as essential not optional. It’s baffling that I didn’t put some of the following techniques into practice much earlier. A large number of men and women typically are unsure of the right way to budget, me included. Being able to keep a record of your spending, your incomings and also outgoings each and every month, quarter, or year, no matter what time period you need to budget for, is without a doubt one of the best life skills I have learnt in the last couple of years.

It does take discipline, and also keeping an eye on your incomings and your outgoings. Here are a few practical tips:

Write a list of all your incomings and outgoings. I know this is boring but it is the start of any good financial plan.

If you find that your outgoings exceed your income then you have a problem. You need to look at what unnecessary spending you can cut from your monthly outgoings. For me that included things like Sky TV, meals out on a weekly basis and regular nights out. These things are optional and it’s surprising how easy you can adjust or replace them with cheaper alternatives.

I realised that we watched mostly box sets and catchup TV. All of these are available by using on line services such as BBC iPlayer or Netflix. This simple step enabled us to save £90 a month as a family. That equates to over £1000 per year. Which if you add on the Tax and National Insurance equates to almost a £1500 pay rise.

The next tip I can give you is to write it down each time you eat out. Include takeaways, snacks and lunches. For use this equated to over £250 per month! Ouch. Rather than completely deny ourselves, we limited our eating out to a Saturday night takeaway once per month.

We also introduced a routine whereby on Fridays both my husband and I would buy lunch. The rest of the week we would use left overs from evening meals or prepare something the night before.

We also got into the habit of producing a weekly meal planner. This enabled us to go to the supermarket with a list of things we actually needed, but also we could make extra the night before for lunches the following day. This immediately took £30 a week off our shopping bill.

Armed with a list and a plan we then took the decision to use cash for all of our purchases other than petrol. Cash is almost out of fashion but it’s much easier to keep track of cash and stick to a budget. You also quickly see how much money you are going through. When you hand over a £20 it feels like you are spending £20, you never get that feeling with a credit or debit card.

Getting a grip of our finances was certainly one of the best steps that we took. It has enabled us to clear our debts and use the extra cash to start a new business venture!

A wheatgrass juicer is an useful kitchen appliance that allows you to make your very own wheatgrass juice. Grass extracts, especially wheatgrass, and the benefits that they bring are very well-known these days, thanks to their promise of detoxification, healing and great well being.

As with many types of juicers or kitchen equipment, the grass juicer comes in two types: an electric wheatgrass juicer and a grinder/manual wheatgrass juicer. Even though electronic wheatgrass juicers are quicker and far more handy, using a hand operated juicer has massive benefits.

One of the main benefits is that manually operated juicers give the operators full control of the juicing process.

Take a racing car for instance. Race drivers race with manual transmission race cars have far more control over their vehicle. Shifting gears manually makes it possible for them to make essential maneuvers along turns, pace up and slow down anytime they believe necessary. There is complete sense of control that the driver has over the vehicle.

Automatic driving leaves all the choices to what the car thinks; the driver simply presses the peddle and cruises along.Manual juicers let customers speed up or slow down when needed. When juicing wheatgrass, it is important to be slow and deliberate to make absolute sure that none of the enzymes are broken. Precision juicing and the slow turning of the lever are important.

Unlike a lemon juicer where the main aim is to squeeze out the citrus, a wheatgrass juicer includes a slow turning process to make sure that every single inch of the grass blade is juiced.

Citrus fruits such as an orange or lemon can in reality be squeezed without having a squeezer or juicer. Wheatgrass, on the other hand is a far finer process. The electric wheatgrass juicer runs on automatic and there’s no slowing it down. Even though it is very rapid and handy, it could harm the wheatgrass and lead to loss of some of the treasured nutrients.

A hand operated juicer is significantly less expensive in price and maintenance. No electrical input obviously means that there are no electrical costs to worry about. Manual juicers are also ultra portable, since they don’t need to be plugged in, they don’t make any of the loud or annoying whirring sounds that generally accompany an electrical device, and they don’t release any carbon material into the atmosphere.

An additional benefit is ease in cleansing and servicing since I can simply get rid of the elements and put them back following cleansing. Also, guide tools don’t bog down due to electrical power failure or circuitry troubles.

Juicing manually can produce a better quality of the juice, since there is no oxidation involved. When juicing wheatgrass especially for healing functions, juicing the grass manually is very essential.

These are just some of the benefits of manually grinding down wheatgrass rather than using an electric juicer. There are obvious down sides of using a manual juicer.

1, it is considerably slower than the electronic model;

2, it can juice less given that it takes much more time and energy;

3, it can be off-putting to many people, especially people who are always in a hurry or are sick.

Yet, if you follow the simple instructions that come with most wheatgrass juicers, is not at all challenging or complicated. It doesn’t need any unique skill, since everything that you will need comes with the juicer,. The most important part of juicing is making sure the grass blades are appropriately positioned prior to grinding, and two, turn the lever right up until all the blades are juiced from bottom to top.

For me anyway, manual juicing is the way to go. This is a tiny inconvenience in contrast to the medicinal rewards you will get from properly prepared wheatgrass juice. Is definitely worth it.

It normally takes me about two hours a day to get to work, that is two hours each day of wasted time. At home, I am busy with my family. With a bit of luck, I may get five hours of sleep each night. An evening at the gym is a very remote dream. How can I have a workout at home, that can take less than an hour?

On top of work I also have to keep the house running. Between house cleaning, picking up the children, soccer games, putting dinner on the table and attending PTA Meetings, my day is very busy. Spending time at the gym is not going to happen. So I requires a quick workout programme.

Yet despite how hectic my life is. I have managed to schedule exercise into my life.

So what’s the solution?

Time is a huge problem with a lot of people. You want to lose weight, burn the fat and gain muscle; but, when could you do it? With this excercise programme, you could practise your workout in seven minutes. It is just enough time for an effective workout.

The 7 Minute Muscle Program consists of Five – 7 Minute Workouts. You can do these on a Monday to Friday week or whatever is convenient for you. Anytime during the day can work.

Where Did The Programme Come From?

The 7 Minute Workout is based on a short-burst training techniques. They turn out to be extremely high intensity workouts. You will be fatigued, after the workout. It’s available to download via the app store or google play.

How Does the Programme Work?

The program is arranged for a five day work week. You target an individual part on each day. The parts contain: Chest, Back, Legs, Biceps, and Shoulders. This gives you a total body workout.

Each day you concentrate on one body part. For the workout, you execute two intense sets in seven minutes. Then, you are exhausted and your muscles are tense. Over time, rest will continue to help shape with your muscles.

The programme has three variations:

a) Beginners – 7 Minute Workouts

b) Intermediate – 14 minute workouts

c) Advanced – 21 Minute workouts

What I liked about this is that with the 7 Minute Muscle Programme, ladies are included. One video shows three women who have profited from the programme. Women like a toned body without the bulging muscles. This programme has supported the ladies, as well.

What About Your Diet?

The 7 Minute Muscle Programme is a complete diet and exercise programme. The Every Other Day Diet acquaints you to nutritious foods that can give you energy. Foods that can burn body fat.

The package includes:

1. E-book with diet and exercise program.

2. 6 Training Videos that display the workouts.

Although given my new love for Paleo, I am using that instead.

Is There A Guarantee?

If the programme does not work for you, there is a 60-day Money Back Guarantee. But, at least, try the programme. You ought to see results in 60 days.

How are we doing?

For Hubby, a quick workout before dinner, worked for him. Hubby kept up with his training, every day. I can see the change in hos body shape and also he says his energy levels have increased..

I have found that late evenings work best for me when the children are in bed. I can definately feel that I am getting stronger and my body shape is changing.

You Can, Too!

The 7 Minute Muscle Programme has 7 minute intense workouts that can help you to build muscle and burn fat. You will see results, within a few weeks. Yes, you can get that well toned and rock hard body by exercising 7 minutes each day.

Obesity and excess weight is a major issue and it’s not just something that is a problem in our country. As I got on the scales at the turn of the year I realised it was a problem for me. Yes it is a national crisis. The cost to the NHS is massive because of the sheer number of people with weight problems and obesity related illnesses. This is constantly on the rise and I am determined not to be part of the problem.

What have I learned about the Paleo diet?

I recently discover the caveman diet and although it took some convincing I am hooked. Paleo is just a way of looking at what our ancestors ate and realising that our bodies where designed to eat what they ate.

Our cavemen ancestors didn’t have beer, wine or spirits following a tough working day, they ate natural and they ate organic.

Coffee and Tea are ok in moderation, and also soda, nevertheless make certain it is the diet or sugar free variety.

The biggest change was for the kids because they normally started their day by consuming cereals. Not only is it the grains they go against Paleo teaching but the hidden sugar contained in breakfast cereals. How does your kid’s teeth react to such a sugary breakfast?

As well as going Paleo we are also going organic. It is shocking what is put onto our food to kill bugs and as a result it goes into our bodies.

Also beware! There is a large problem today. Food companies are packaging food as being healthy for our bodies. Cheap processed food is not healthy and often contains hidden sugar.

Another obsession that people seem to have is shopping at a health store thinking that their food is healthy food. Organic does not always mean wholesome. There are many organic cookies, sweet, etc., which are full of sugar and will do nothing to help you with your bid to lose weight.

A great source of natural protein is eggs. These are very much on the breakfast menu.

We are mainly eating fruits and veggies. The more organic the better really, and nearby we have a local farm which is amazing! Also, I have learned the darker the fruit or veggie, the better because it has much more concentrated vitamins.

You can diet plan all that you want, but I am afraid there is no avoiding exercise. This will increase the health benefits that you will receive from a Paleo Diet and it can be a great deal of fun. It is all based on what workouts you select and picking something that is enjoyable. Workouts can help you to lose weight quicker because they speed up your metabolic rate, especially as you gain muscle mass. The extra muscle you gain from exercising means that your body naturally burns more energy. Even when you are sat at your desk!

Money is something that everyone spends in different ways. We make good and poor choices with our money. Some individuals who have a ton of money invest it foolishly, while some who have very little discover how to manage it and make it last. In a capitalist society money is not something that will ever be distributed evenly.

One factor, however, that is the same for everyone is time. Each person is given 24 hrs a day. How you spend your time can make a big difference to your life. Career success, your earnings, and also your health and are more linked to your time than they are your money.

Education is the key to prosperity, and I am not talking about formal education. Some of the smartest people that I know do not have a formal education. They do share one thing in common though, and that is an inner drive for prosperity and success.

They also seem to not look to others, or make excuses as to why their life is the way it is. Taking responsibility to gain more understanding in a subject matter can lead to wealth and prosperity. Which is why I have decided to start a blog. I want to change my life for the better one day at a time and one blog post at a time.

Another area I feel that we need to improve on as a family is reducing our unnecessary costs. We have taken the drastic step of cancelling our satellite TV subscription. It was a difficult one getting all family members to agree to a new budget as we look for new ways to reduce our costs.

We keep track of minor expenses as they can all add up, like dinners out, entertainment and not buying too many groceries.

Thinking outside of the box and investigating new possibilities is my aim. It might include dramatic changes like downsizing our home, selling possessions or even going down to one vehicle but I am determined to make this change.

This new lease of life was inspired by two recent books that I read, perhaps I will post a review at some stage. For now I encourage you to read Rich Dad Poor Dad. Also take a loom at The 4-Hour Work Week – this is another book that has drastically changed my life.